Speaking at a conference for procurement leaders on the topic of “Building Sustainable Relationships”, I decided to share some guidance I always give when asked: “After all of your years researching leading in the Middle East, is there one piece of advice you can give me?”
This piece of advice is to “have a cup of coffee”.
Coffee is a way of life. Friends gather for hours over coffee to discuss the matters of the day, society, and the world. The routine is more of a cultural relic.
Since the 15th century and the earliest evidence of coffee-drinking, the practice has been an integral part of Arab society. More important than the coffee itself is the prevalence of the coffee house and the daily ritual.
As a leader in the Middle East, you would be wise to remove your watch for a moment and adopt the practice of having a regular cup of coffee with your boss, employees, customers and even prospective clients. The dividends from this practice far outweigh the anticipated loss of time. Relationships are built over coffee, not in the boardroom.
But don’t limit the idea of having coffee only to the black stuff, as the practice can also include tea, shisha or a meal.
Showing respect over coffee is an important part of Middle Eastern family culture, as exemplified in the practice of having a regular (usually daily) cup of coffee with one’s father.
In the West, it might seem the “right thing” to do to meet dad for coffee periodically. In Arab culture, it is the honourable thing to pass by dad’s house daily for coffee; it happens without forethought.
When leaders recognise and practice the daily cup of coffee ritual in the workplace, they model a patriarchal style of management, and this results in effective workplace relationships, improved performance and increased employee engagement and retention.
Here in the Middle East, having coffee is about much more than the coffee. Where I come from, it is often about enjoying the coffee’s taste (and getting the much-needed caffeine) as well as spending time casually with friends. But in the Middle East having coffee also shows respect and value, and most importantly, it is where trust is built.
Trust is the backbone of Arab society and the currency of business. Trust is not built over random encounters or official business in the office; it is built, matured, and sustained over time.
Trust is not limited to moral character – meaning honesty, integrity as in “I can give you my wallet and I know that you will not take any money from it” or as another example, telling the truth and not hiding any points.
The other type of trust is performance character, which is someone who will do what he or she says. This centres on the trust you have that another person will deliver according to expectation.
Trust comprehensively covers both elements – moral and performance character.
In Middle East culture, one mechanism for building trust is spending time over a cup of coffee or tea. As difficult as this is to express in words, there is a relationship between time and trust.
So returning to the heart of this tip, it is advised that you press pause on your stopwatch and invest time over coffee or a meal to build trust.
It is the key to virtually all relationships in the Arab world. To succeed in the Middle East, it is imperative to understand the effect of time and not limit yourself to days on a calendar.
Tommy Weir is a leadership adviser and author of 10 Tips for Leading in the Middle East and other leadership writings. Follow him on Twitter: @tommyweir
Follow us on Twitter @Ind_Insights
The%20Woman%20King%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Gina%20Prince-Bythewood%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Viola%20Davis%2C%20Thuso%20Mbedu%2C%20Sheila%20Atim%2C%20Lashana%20Lynch%2C%20John%20Boyega%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
